Shovels are used for moving materials from one location to another. A shovel has the ability to quickly displace material without requiring the user to touch that material. A quantity of material is generally scooped up by a shovel and then released in a different location. Shovels can be used to displace a wide variety of materials including dirt, snow, etc.
Shovels include two primary components, a blade and a shaft. The blade is the shovel component in which the material is gathered. Blades are often concave or rounded to facilitate retaining loose materials. The shaft is made of one or more elongated members which extend away from the blade a particular amount. The shaft provides an interface to the blade for a user and can be used to create a lever force when scooping up material. The shaft is also used to support the materials during transportation. The shaft may also include a handle region for a user's hand. The shaft may include multiple components to facilitate collapsibility, such as interesting, telescoping, etc. for improved portability purposes.
The ability to collapse a snow shovel into a low profile configuration is a critical component of itsportability. The collapsible system of a portable snow shovel creates an extended state for operation and a collapsed state for storage. It is advantageous to be able to collapse the components to a maximal degree. Conventional collapsible systems fail to optimize the reduction in shaft length for maximal collapsibility. Therefore, there is a need in the industry for a snow shovel system that overcomes the disadvantages of the prior art by incorporating an improved collapsing system.